RuneScape Forum Archive | ^+^ The Age of Nhur ^+^

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Why?” Alpha asked.

V regarded the large creature with surprise. Was the thing really showing sorrow over losing its entire pack in one instant?

“Why?” Alpha cried once more. “We hunt. We feed. Why kill us for being what we are?”

“Ah, crap,” he heard Joran say. Alpha charged the shades at once with a mighty roar. Joran and Rajh managed to move out of the way, but Arial wasn’t so lucky. The shade general fell down as the creature rapidly approached him, visibly drained from his unexpected display of power. Alpha scooped Arial up with his horns and threw the general back with a violent buck of his head. Arial landed with a grunt next to V.

“Guhh…” the general moaned.

V noticed Alpha turning once more to face the general. “Not so tough now, huh?” it bellowed. The Hound began to charge once more.

V drew his crossbow and rapidly fired. A bat-shaped blast connected at the same time his bolt did, and both displays of magic fizzled out, leaving the creature unaffected. Thoughts raced through the undead’s mind. He knew that his natural power most likely wouldn’t affect the creature if Skarjil magic didn't. And he didn't exactly feel as if he could best the creature in a contest of natural strength. He had the skill, sure, but in the end the creature could easily end the conflict with a lucky swipe of its claws.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:35:02 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:28:24 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

That only left one choice. Drawing his crossbow once more, V tapped the battle hammer symbol which was surrounded by lightning bolts. The symbol began to glow, and he fired once more.

The result was obvious. Before when V fired a bolt, it was just that: a small bolt of energy. But what came out of his weapon now was no bolt…or at least not a normal one. A small orb of green energy shot out of the weapon in an arch, and connected with Alpha. The bolt rapidly expanded after it landed, causing the charging monstrosity to stop in its tracks.

Alpha writhed violently as the bolt discharged its lethal energy. The creature crumpled to the ground helplessly, whimpering as it did so.

V gathered himself and forced his body to stand up. He helped Arial get up as well, though the general looked like he was more or less recovered from his ordeal.

“Is everyone alright?” Koreth asked.

Everyone nodded as they gathered around Alpha. The fact that the creature went from an enraged werewolf mockery to a whimpering heap on the floor in less than three seconds was amazing to everyone present, even V.

“Wh-why?” it asked.

“What’s it talking about?” Joran asked.

“I have no clue,” Koreth answered.

“Any chance we can interrogate this guy or something?” Arial wondered.

Lukil approached the group. “I can try reading its mind. Though I doubt it would work.”

“Do it,” Arial said.

Lukil nodded, and closed his eyes. He seemed to be in deep concentration, and then began to convulse before collapsing on the floor.

Arial helped the Psionic fatso up. “No good,” he panted.

“What did you see?* V asked.

“I saw…no, felt…hatred. So..much…hatred. For everything,” he breathed.

Alpha coughed, causing everyone to look at the pathetic creature. “I only…wanted…to…serve...him…” it moaned.

V leaned over and punched the creature in the face. Its eyes rolled back in its head and it began coughing again.

“Who? Serve who?” V asked.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:36:10

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Him…” it rasped. “The…Dark…Father…He’r…”Alpha’s eyes closed as it began coughing up blood.

“Son of a…” Koreth said. He furiously began working some magic, but whatever the Warlock had hoped to accomplish had failed miserably. The Alpha Hound, for all intents and purposes, was dead.

“Sooo….what now?* Joran asked.

Arial shook his head. "I don’t know. I mean, we’re alive now. So that means we have to go back and get Grim and hope we can work out the problem of the ticked off Rakshasas waiting for us on the surface.”

“Or,” a ghostly voice sounded from behind them. “You can finish what you started.”

The group turned around and came face to face with what looked like a ghost that had been a sage of sorts in life.

“Who the hell are you?” V asked suspiciously.

“My name…is unimportant. What matters now is that without an Alpha leader to guide them, the rest of the Doomhounds will seek out a new successor to the role.”

“So that’s what these things are called,” Koreth said. “I kind of wondered, but wasn’t sure.”

The ghost regarded Koreth with disinterest. “You know of the Hounds?”

“Sort of,” he replied. “I’ve studied various folklore and found references to them in some stories. But before recently I thought they were just that: stories.”

The ghost cackled. “Oh, dear Warlock, I assure you: They are all too real. As is their Lord.”

“I kind of figured that out when they sacked Egrissa,” Koreth shot back.

“As you did.” The ghost looked at V, and did a double take. “You!? What are *you* doing here!?”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:37:16 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:30:02 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“What do you mean?” V asked.

“Don’t play games with me, Damned One!” it shrieked. “I was there! I saw you when you rode to the Gate all those millennia ago! I saw you throw everything away, and for what!? Power? Money? Or did they promise you that which you desire the most yet cannot have?”

“Enough!” V shot back angrily. “What the hell are you talking about? I ask because I have news for you, spirit, but I don’t know a damned thing about a ‘gate’! Nothing!”

“Lies!” the ghost cried. “We trusted you! You were supposed to be the One, yet you betrayed us!”

“Wait,” Arial interrupted. “Just what’s going on here?”

The ghost regarded the general with contempt. “I pity you for not realizing whom you travel with, Fallen One,” it replied.

“And who would that be, exactly?”

The ghost laughed. “I see it in your mind. You saw the mural on your way here. You saw who was in it. Do you not realize it now?*

Arial thought for a second. He honestly didn't know much about Skarjil history other than the fact that something had wiped them out eons ago. Hell, the very fact that the only signs of them ever existing were little more than well-kept and well defended ruins and crypts was really the only reason why anyone who wasn’t a well learned scholar knew they had at least existed in the first place.

“I’m sorry,” he said at last. “But I honestly have no clue what you’re referring to.”

“Pity,” the ghost lamented. “As for you,” he addressed V. “I expect that you shall pay for your sins in time.”

“Well, I can say I’m looking forward to it,” he replied dryly.

“So are the Mad Minds,” the ghost said. Turning to the rest of the group, the ghost said, “I am sorry for my outburst, Fallen Ones. Yet, I feel I must warn you: now the threat comes from both ends. One from within, and one from without. A threat from the Red Corpse, and a threat from the city of the Shadow Skeleton.”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:39:00 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:31:39 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Nhur,” Arial muttered. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling the Mahjarrat had something to do with this. Just what it was, he wasn’t sure of.

“En Sathba quitarra plorixas,” the ghost said. “The First One rules them. Take it for what you will.”

The ghost vanished before anyone could press it for more information. Everyone looked surprised, even the usually reserved V.

“Well…that was weird,” Rajh said.

Arial shot him a sullen look. “Everyone, get back to the main hall,” he said. “We’re getting Grim and getting the hell out of here.”

As the group began to file out of the room, V approached Arial. “Listen, general…about the ghost…”

“Save it,” Arial spat. “We’ll talk later.”

V didn't argue. In truth, he really did*’t want to, especially after what just happened. Of course, surviving a massive skirmish was one thing. Hell, even talking to a ghost was normal for him. Yet he couldn’t shake the being’s words from his mind.

Who did he betray many eons ago? And why didn't he remember any of it?

~^+^~

It didn't take them as long as they thought it would to get back to Grim. The party was silent as they ascended the levels of the abandoned tomb, and there was no small amount of tension between all of them. When they had gathered in the main hall, they found the pseudo-elemental sitting cross legged on the ground, obviously bored out of his mind.

“Oh hey, ye’r back,” he said. “I miss anything?”

“Oh, the usual,” Joran replied casually. “We found a nest of those wolf things, got in a fight with them, killed the alpha male, met a ghost, and found out that V here’s some kind of ancient undead traitor to someone or something.”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:40:08 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:32:54 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“You make that sound so boring,” Koreth said with a sigh.

“Hell, it sounds better than just sittin’ here,” Grim retorted.

“So, wait a sec. You just sat here the whole time?!” Joran asked.

The stone man nodded. “Truth be told, I sorta feel bad about it,” he admitted. “Feels like I ain’t pullin’ my fair share around here, if ya catch my drift.”

“Oh, you’ll be pulling your weight around here in a few seconds,” Arial said. “We’re leaving. The Rakshasas that will most likely be standing out there waiting to see if we’re dead or not probably won’t like us coming out alive. We’ll need you to talk them down while Koreth here tries to get us all a fair distance away from this place if he can.”

"And I can," the Warlock said. "Transportation magic is a specialty of mine, in fact."

*Sounds good,” Grim said. He didn't seem all too happy about being the talker of the group, but really, what choice did he have? The tribes thought he was some sort of spirit, so it was an obvious advantage that the stone man held over the others.

The group left the room and quickly made their way up the stairs. When they reached the top, the tomb door was already wide open. No light of any sort poured through the door, and when they exited the crypt, they found that night had fallen over the forest.

What worried Arial more was the fact that the group of tiger-men that had ushered them into the ancient crypt was lying on the ground piled up on one another, with some rather large pools of blood surrounding various corpses.

Some of them were mauled by what he guessed to be the Doomhounds. Others were impaled on their own weapons, be they spears or poleaxes. Even more seemed to have been burned by some kind of fire, though the odd stench of chlorine surrounded such corpses instead of smoke.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:40:48 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:34:39 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Holy hell,” Rajh whispered to nobody in particular. “What…how…who can do this to an entire party of hunters?”

Arial walked over to a random corpse and bent down to examine it. “I want to say that they got ambushed by some of the Hounds,” he said. “But the fact that the markings are all on the front of the bodies and not the back lead me to believe that it was a single attacker…maybe two, assuming it summoned a familiar or something.”

“But why one?” Joran asked. “How can you be sure they weren’t just ambushed by the wolf…hound…things?”

“I get the feeling if it was the Hounds, we’d be seeing markings on their backs,” V said. The undead was bent over a corpse pile, shifting through it with his weapon. “He’s right…there’s markings on the front sides, but not back. I’m assuming that the Hounds would’ve attacked in a pack, which means they would be using flanking tactics in order to score free hits from behind.”

“Then there’s the burnt ones,” Arial said. He was examining a charred corpse as he spoke. “I smell something acidic, possibly chlorine. Last I checked the Hounds weren’t capable of magic, let alone had any kind of acidic bite or something. Or, at least not from what I've seen so far.”

“I ain’t liking the looks of this,” Grim said. “We should probably get outta dodge before whatever found them finds us.”

“I concur,” Koreth said. “I have a destination in mind, good general. Should we teleport to it now, or would you prefer to walk?”

“Teleporting is fine,” Arial said. “C’mon, guys. Grim’s right…I don’t think it would be a good idea to stick around.”

The group gathered around the Warlock, and they plunged into the shadows as the demonic invoker whisked them away from the gruesome scene. They never heard the beat of leathery wings as a shadowy form took flight from a nearby tree.

~^+^~

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:42:14 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:36:11 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

A hooded woman made her way through the bustling streets of the Great Bazaar late that night. She passed several groups huddled near the stands of foreign merchants, who spoke to their customers in hushed whispers. She knew that they shouldn’t concern her, but the rumors and gossip were all too good to pass up.

It appeared that news spread fast, she thought with a smirk to herself. It hadn’t been more than a tenday since the Chantry’s tower fell to some lycanthropic attackers, and already merchants and peasants, and even off-duty Ordinators, had begun circulating various rumors of what happened. Some said that the Lord Emperor had ordered the tower to be razed in retaliation for the attempt on his life earlier in the month. Others whispered rumors of some bizarre cult that worshipped Werewolves deciding to gain unwilling converts by attacking the tower, and stranger still were rumors of a rogue Fade Witch conjuring up demons for an invasion from worlds beyond.

The woman rounded a corner and entered a small plaza which held a statue of a winged dragon in the center. No doubt it belonged to the bar carved into the nearby cliff, though such matters weren’t important to her this night.

Sighting her destination, she quickened her pace. As she neared the door of a wooden magic shop, she stopped and listened intently. When it became apparent that nobody except the shopkeeper was in the shop, she opened the door and entered. A small tinkle sounded through the store, though the shopkeeper, who was an old man of considerable age, didn't stir from his deep slumber in the slightest.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:42:47 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:37:45 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“I’m not stupid, you know,” the woman said.

“I never said you were, dear,” the shopkeeper mumbled in reply. “Though what you younglings fail to realize is that with great age comes a greater need to rest every now and then. More so for those who practice the mystic arts.”

“I can imagine,” she replied dryly. “Either way, I have news.”

The old man stretched his arms and yawned as he opened his eyes. “I received your sending,” he said. “What’s going on?”

Mori pulled her hood back and shook her head. Strands of blonde hair strayed near her eyes, though she didn't seem to care too much at that instant as she stared daggers at the old man. “I’m going to make this short,” she said. “The Chantry’s tower was attacked by…some kind of…I don’t know…Werewolf? That seems about right.”

The man’s eyes narrowed. “So your post is compromised, I presume?”

“My post is gone, actually,” she replied. “I’m sorry, but I’m not exactly sure of the entire events myself. What I do know, however, is that I was spying on the Archmage as ordered. He was...experimenting...with something. An artifact, I presume.”

“Oh? And this ‘artifact’…did you see it at all?”

Mori pursed her lips for a second before replying. “I’m not exactly sure. I recall seeing something that looked like an eye set in the center of a sun for a brief second, but the strangest thing happened. I’m not sure if it's because my spell did anything to it, but it appeared extremely blurry to the point where I couldn’t tell what it was after my scrying spell saw it.”

“But the spell showed everything else perfectly?”

“Yes,” Mori replied. “I even saw Romulus die in an explosion he caused."

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:44:23 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:38:48 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Ha! You only think he caused it,” a voice said from behind her.

Mori turned around, and saw a well-cut man standing behind her. His silver hair was styled in a crew cut, and his natural shadows were shaped into some kind of odd symbols across his bare arms. She knew all too well who the newcomer was.

“I’m sorry, sir, but we’re closed,” the old man said. “Now if you’d be so kind as to leave so I could finish my business with the young lady here, I’ll meet with you outside after I close up after her.”

Mori kicked herself mentally. Was her boss really as stupid as he sounded just now, or was it all an act? She really didn't know, but even then she couldn’t help but turn red as she realized that Romulus’ pet Hexblade had probably been following her since she left the tower. How she missed him stalking her, she didn't know.

“Oh, I don’t buy that for a damn second!” Marik cried. “Besides, Mori here knows what I’m here for, right?”

“Do you know this man?” the old man asked.

Mori winced and replied, “Yes, I do. His name’s Marik. One of Romulus’ hired blades.”

“Make that 'Ex’ hired blade,” Marik said. “I’ll be honest, I was tired of the old mage’s games. He kept sending me after literal ghosts, and on top of that a good portion of the time the threats I was sent after did*’t even really exist.”

“Interesting,” the man said. “But really, if he’s dead, why come here?”

“Because he knew of your little…’group’,” Marik said. “And I don’t know what you did to scare him, but whatever it was you did it well.”

“So, is he dead then?” the man asked.

“Aye,” Marik replied. “And I killed him.”

Mori slapped her head. “Bull crap,” she retorted. “I saw him cast the spell that consumed his body!”

“He was casting a protective enchantment, actually,” Marik said. “But I finished my little trick before it took effect."

"So, he’s dead then. What do you want anyway?” the shopkeeper asked once more.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

11-Dec-2010 02:46:06 - Last edited on 31-Jan-2011 02:40:23 by A Mad Hatter

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^+^ The Age of Nhur ^+^